Confirmed guest is asking if a substitute guest can stay because she can't make it due to death in

[Jorge217]

I have a moderate cancellation policy. A confirmed guest scheduled to arrive in a couple of days is telling me they had a death in the family, so they may not be able to make it; however, they want to know if second guest can still stay at my place. How do I make that change to verify the second guest has been vetted by Airbnb?

[Hilary-And-Ed0 · Accepted solution]

Technically you can not make this switch on the same reservation.  People are not supposed to book and then have someone else come in their stead.  That said, it happens all the time.  Sometimes people are up front (someone booking for their parents who might not have an Airbnb account, for example), sometimes not.  If you accept this person, and anything happens, you are not protected by Airbnb's policies. 

I would recomend having the person cancel, and letting them know that you will be happy to have the other person book the same dates at the same prices using their own account (make sure you get the name).

[Jorge217]

Thank you so much for your advice!

[Andrea9]

@Jorge217

There's an additional version to @Hilary-And-Ed0's:

Tell guest to have their substitute create a profile so that the reservation can be transferred to them. Make sure you ask for their full name so that it's in writing on your message thread. Then call Airbnb and tell them the story about the reservation transfer.

You can't do it yourself, and it's a shame for the guest to lose their booking fee, but the helpdesk can do some magic and help all around in this 🙂

[Hilary-And-Ed0]

@Andrea9, @Jorge217

Thanks Andrea!  I did not know about this - I learned something too!

[Jorge217]

Thank you so much.  This is good to know as I didn't know this was an option.  I ended up telling to cancel if she had to, but that she would be subject to moderate cancellation policy, but that if her friend re-booked I would reimburse her fees.  I also referred her to the extenuating circumstances policy that Airbnb and advised her that her situation may fall under that policy, but to contact Airbnb with her claim in the event her friend didn't rebook.